For all those expecting to see Evan Longoria trot out on the field on Sunday in his brand new red, white and blue USA uniform, you may be disappointed. In fact, if you take the words of USA Manager Davey Johnson literally, then don't expect to see Longoria on the field at all.
“I’m not expecting to use him,” Johnson said. “He’s an insurance policy. I could have used somebody that could play first base because we’ve had injuries over there [and it’s] a little more critical to the team. We’re in good shape. We’re going to be in good shape on Sunday.” --RaysReport
It seems like a waste of time to send Longoria cross country in the middle of spring training just to sit on a bench. What it truly sounds like to me, is Johnson is upset that he didn't get a player he wanted. I'm not sure who made the call on adding Longoria, but it doesn't seem to be Johnson.
If the USA makes it to the finals, they will play Monday night at 9 PM. This means Longo would've missed not only today's game, but the two games over the weekend and Monday's contest as well. The Rays have an off day Tuesday, so the earliest he would get back on the field with the team is Wednesday. That would be almost a week of not seeing live pitching. It shouldn't be that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things, but is it really necessary?